What a fun read! This is a book you may want to read in the company of others; I know that often I found myself reading a passage aloud to whoever was in the same room. There are passages that are amusing, some more serious but all are informative and entertaining. This is a great book for those who enjoy trivia, little known odd facts, words and their history as well as people who like just like knowing something other people don't.

I read this on my Kindle and I noticed that while each passage was separated by a couple of empty lines and there was a picture of a key, the date was not listed at the beginning of each entry. It was often buried in the passage but I didn't always know which day I was reading about until I came upon in the passage itself. I was reading the book from the first page through to the end. This would have been a bigger issue had I wanted to look up and read a particular day. I don't know if this is something I would have encountered had I been reading a print copy.

The Cabinet of Linguistic Curiosities is a collection of obsolete etymological weirdness, linguistic dead ends, and other fascinating features of the English language. Due out 14th Oct 2019 from the University of Chicago press, it's 384 pages and will be available in hardcover, paperback, and ebook formats.

I'm a self avowed word nerd. I love language and the way it has shaped (and been shaped by) human culture and interaction. This book was a gold mine of interesting tidbits of which I was previously unaware. The format of the book is simple. It's set up in a 'word a day' calendar format with a word and some of its etymology related in a conversational and informal short essay of roughly 1-2 pages. I was truly impressed with how few of these words were previously known to me. There are worthy words here and a fair bit of related linguistic history.

The book also includes an alphabetical word list of the included words and a short bibliography (several of which are now on my to-be-read pile).

I enjoyed the book, loved the format, and think this would make a really superlative holiday gift for anyone with an appreciation for linguistics as well as a cracking addition to the home (or public) library.

Five stars, a truly fun book.

Interesting book for the linguistically-inclined

I liked this book especially the way that the author tied an event to a date to an archaic word. However in most cases the words were so obscure that they had little relevance. But reading a page a day should be interesting enough but this is not a book to be read straight through. As this is what was intended, I am giving this book a recommendation for people fascinated by language.

Goodreads Rating: 3.5 stars

I have not fully finished this book at the time of writing this review, as I'm trying to read only a few entries here and there to get the full effect of the book; however, I've read about half the entries (6 months worth of words) so I feel confident in writing an honest review at this point.

This book is a bit two-fold in it's premise--every day of the year gets a quirky word associated with it, as well as an important historical event that happened on that date. Sometimes the word directly correlates with the event, while other times the two bits of info barely seem related.

Despite the occasional disconnect between the word and the event, I love quirky words and obscure historical events equally, so I enjoyed most of the entries! My Goodreads updates are chock full of notable words and their histories so I can reference them in the future. I know I would have enjoyed the book even more as a physical copy, but that's just more of a personal preference when it comes to these types of books.

It would make a lovely gift book for someone who's a word nerd or history buff!

Well this is going to be a pretty quick review since the premise of this book is pretty straightforward! That’s definitely not a negative thing though, because I really really enjoyed reading it.

The entire premise of the book is that you get a definition, and the history of, a weird and uncommon word for every day of the year. They also all somehow relate to the day that they’ve been chosen for which was a really fun touch.

I’d definitely recommend reading this one how it was meant to be read, a word a day. Or at least a few words a day, because even though I still enjoyed reading it and learning a bunch it was a bit much to just try and read in a few days. Still totally doable, and still a great addition but maybe drag it out a bit.

This was so much fun and there’s a few that I’ve already started using because I just love them so much. (Most notably telepheme and smoot) I think that this one would be a really fun present, especially for Christmas to just start off the next year where the book begins.

So there we go, a super fun book that will also help you learn some fun new words and some obscure history. Definitely recommend this one.

***Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review***

An absolutely intriguing book! Though I have not finished it yet, I'm trying to actually do a word a day, I am already excited for each new thing I'll learn and how ridiculous I'll sound trying to pronounce these new words.

This was a fun and educational read, I loved the word-a-day. I collect dictionaries and books like this but I think it would make an excellent gift for someone just starting to enjoy linguistics & word origins.

A unique & useful must read for fellow word nerds and lovers of linguistics and etymology. The book provides forgotten/underused words for each day of the year. I enjoyed flipping to significant dates to see which words were listed for each date. Had a few chuckles & learned quite a few new words.

I am a big fan of books about language, grammar, and word origins. This one is fantastic! The stories are so entertaining and informative! I love learning new words while also learning a lot of forgotten historical facts and origins. I can't wait to recommend this book to all the word nerds!

Though new words get added to dictionaries frequently, there are words that have slipped out of common usage. These words are still quite applicable, and you can find times to use them. In The Cabinet of Linguistic Curiosities, Paul Anthony Jones brings some of these words back into the public eye.

I like learning new words, and there are 366 words in this book to learn about. However, each entry holds more than just the definition of the word. Where possible, the known history is given. I find this helpful, especially if the words comes from another language.

An event in history that matches with the word closes out the entry. These bits of trivia make the book even better to me, as they cover a wide variety of subjects. Plus, if you’re looking to slip the word into a conversation, these events can be a good way to explain the word, or just act as a jumping off point.

One thing that I would have liked to have seen is a pronunciation guide, especially on the odder words. If I’m going to learn new words, I would really like to pronounce them as accurately as possible. The book is still fun without the pronunciations, I just think that would make it better.

I received a complimentary copy from the publisher through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Paul Anthony Jones has assembled a considerable collection of lovely words in this book. This text could be a novel addition to a linguistics of writing course — but it’s enjoyable as a reading experience on its own. What I enjoyed most about the book was the level that f etymological detail Jones included in each entry. A fascinating read.

I loved this Yearbook of forgotten words! I love new words and have a thirst for knowledge. I really liked how the author included the definition of the word, the roots and a little history and made into something that was not boring. There were a lot of neat words in this book. Definitely recommend.

I'm a linguistics major so this work is particularly interesting to me. It's not the type of book I would personally read cover-to-cover although I know fellow classmates who certainly would, but I really enjoyed flipping through it to certain sections and pages and learning more about some linguistics curiosities. I can't wait to give it a more in-depth look over with colleagues, classmates, and professors. Definitely one I would recommend to others. The excerpts were neat and unique and perfect for a slow rainy day with a cup of tea by the window. I think the best way to enjoy this book is by reading it as it advices on the first page, one story a day for a year, slowly sipping the enjoyment. Another interesting thing about this book is how much I feel like I have learned for my own writing, these little unique words are what can truly elevate and make a story.

A really interesting book that has a lot of forgotten and lesser known words. It is one that i don't think would do well in the library, but one that I might own personally.

On a whim, I requested The Cabinet of Linguistic Curiosities: A Yearbook of Forgotten Words from NetGalley. I received it in exchange for an honest review. Unlike most NetGalley books, this one was released in 2017 and is available now. I’ve enjoyed it and would recommend it as a gift for language lovers. It is what it says it is, a year’s worth of forgotten words arranged by date, often the word is related to an incident that happened on that date in history. It’s fun, occasional reading.

The author, Paul Anthony Jones, is clearly a lover of words. He has written 6 books about “obscure words and language facts” and runs the twitter account @HaggardHawks. His website describes the book as:

Inspired by the daily “Word of the Day” tweets over on the @HaggardHawks Twitter feed, The Cabinet of Linguistic Curiosities brings together an entire year’s worth of daily obscure vocabulary—with a twist of fascinating historical context added for good measure.

I enjoy when people are sharing the thing they love, even if it isn’t something I love. I’m a reader, so obviously I have a strong affection for words. I found this book surprisingly readable. I skipped around, looking at the word on my birth date (the oddly appropriate monomachy), other friends’ birth dates, and randomly flipping through. One of my favorite entries was early in the book, January 8:

Sheep’s-eye (v.) to look amorously at someone
Although the bill’s impenetrable legalese kept its rulings fairly vague, its architect, State Assemblyman Francis G. Landon, was less ambiguous when it came to explaining who he intended it to target. As he explained to the New York Morning Telegraph, ‘My bill is aimed at the flirters, gigglers, mashers, and makers of goo-goo eyes in public. We have all been disgusted with them . . . so they must be brought to their senses.’ Anyone caught in violation of Landon’s bill faced a $500 fine, or even up to a year in prison. Remarkably, Landon’s bill was passed the following day. Even more remarkably, it has never been repealed–meaning flirting has officially been illegal in New York ever since.

New York Cannonballers, did you know it is illegal to flirt in your state? Has the law changed in the last two years?

This would be a good book gift for a word lover.

What an absolutely charming book!

In this book Paul Anthony Jones brings to light some of the most amusing stories about words and how they got that way, with one for every day of the year. Each entry is short, sweet, and to-the-point and can be read through in a single sitting or picked up and perused occasionally.

I'm particularly fond of my birthday word—August 16, "Pennif" is slang for a bank note which comes from, of all things, German-derived slang written backwards. Huh. Other favorites included October 11 and November 23, but no spoilers.

Definitely a fun gift for a linguist or other word-nerd in your life!

This us a very entertaining and informative read. The words described span a lengthyntime period. This adds to the entertaining nature as of illustrates the nature in which our language morphs over time

This book is a fun, year-long book of word and history trivia. Each day of the year has an entry, and every entry contains an unusual word along with an event that happened on that day in history which illustrates the word's meaning. So for each day of the year, there's a word and it's meaning and some history of that word--like it's first known use and how the meaning has changed with time. Often the author also included some other words with the same root. Then there's a summary of what happened during the tied-in historical event for that day. The historical events and words come from the Middle Ages up to modern times. The words are no longer in use, though similar words may be still in use.

A copy of this is already on its way to the classroom! This is a great morning opener book for my older students, all of whom love random bits of trivia. I anticipate seeing some of these words making the rounds in the halls as the year progresses. It discusses history, word usage, word bastardization, and language development in general as each day a new word (tied to an event that occurred on that date) is introduced.

Word nerds rejoice - this one is for us! The author promises a long-forgotten word, unearthed from the past as well as the story behind it, and a related historical event for every day of the year. He delivers past all expectations. Never overly pedantic, this is a very readable book for lovers of words (and I'm certainly one of those!). Just don't be surprised if you start looking for ways to bring up words like "fedifragous" in daily conversation!